22 October 2003 02:02
Moscow IPO to value Irkut at Dollars 500m
One of Russia's leading aircraft manufacturers will today announce
details of an initial public offering on the domestic stock market for next
March likely to value the company at more than Dollars 500m, according to
people familiar with the plans.
Irkut Corporation, manufacturer of the Be-200 seaplane and the Sukhoi
military aircraft, intends to sell 20 per cent of its shares to investors for
about Dollars 100m, in the largest IPO yet on the fledgling but fast growing
Russian equity market. It plans to follow up with a London Stock Exchange
listing one year later.
The company has already appointed the Moscow-based MDM Bank as lead manager,
and is in advanced discussions for the choice of international banks, lawyers
and public relations consultants for the IPO.
The quotation will represent a fresh diversification for investors into
listed Russian companies away from the energy sector which currently
dominates the stock market, and a pioneering move into the strategically
sensitive aerospace sector.
In preparation for the listing, Irkut is to announce unaudited 2002 financial
results in accordance with US generally accepted accounting principles,
showing earnings before interest, tax and depreciation of about Dollars 100m,
on sales of over Dollars 500m. It has an order book of more than Dollars
4.5bn.
Irkut's shares will trade on both the RTS and the Micex exchanges, in
common with Russia's two previous, but much smaller, introductions
following the August 1998 financial crisis: the pharmacy chain 36.6 and the
information group RBK or RosBusinessConsulting. Under new Russian securities
legislation, companies are obliged to obtain and maintain a domestic listing
for several months ahead of being allowed to sell shares on foreign
exchanges.
Irkut, which is based in the Siberian city of Irkutsk, combines a number of
manufacturers and design bureaux brought together in 2000. Its restructuring
reflects broader initiatives undertaken over the past three years by both
private companies and the Russian government to consolidate the fragmented
sector in an effort to relaunch new aircraft.
The amphibious Be-200, which was first tested in 1998, was put on show during
President Vladimir Putin's recent trip to Italy to meet premier Silvio
Berlusconi. It represents an attempt to diversify into commercial aviation,
for applications including fire-fighting. The company says it is in
discussions for sales to China, South Korea, Israel and Greece.
Most of Irkut's current orders are for a range of Sukhoi military
fighter jets and trainers, but the management has set out a strategy to
balance future sales evenly between military and commercial aircraft.
[FTI [The Financial Times]] |
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